Samsung may ship more than 500 million devices in 2013

It’s fair to say that Samsung had a successful 2012. It ousted Nokia to become the number one cell phone manufacturer and it released two widely successful handsets: the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2. As 2013 steadily approaches, Samsung aims to uphold this pace.

The company plans to ship more than 500 million phones next year, according to the Korea Times. Samsung, which currently holds the title as the world’s largest cell phone maker, aims to ship 510 million handsets in 2013. This is a 20 percent increase from the estimated 420 million shipped in 2012, Korea Times reports. Samsung already shipped 288 million in the first nine months of this year, and expects a Christmas surge to account for the rest of the estimated figure.

Although the company’s high-end devices are what put it at war with bitter rival Apple, it expects to sell a significant amount of lower-end devices next year.

“Of the 510 million handsets it plans to sell, 390 million are slated as smartphones and 120 million, feature and budget phones,” an executive from one of Samsung’s key suppliers told Korea Times.

Perhaps what’s even more interesting is that in addition to its popular line of Galaxy devices, Samsung plans to hinge some of this success on new Windows Phone 8 or Windows RT gadgets next year. The report said that Samsung may release a lineup of devices powered by Microsoft’s mobile operating systems, but did not specify any further information.

Samsung will allegedly manufacture 240 million of these upcoming electronics at its Vietnamese factory, 170 million in China and 20 million in India, Korea Times reported. This is in addition to the 40 million that will be produced in Samsung’s Korean factory. By 2020, Samsung will reportedly shell out $2.2 billion on its handset factories in Vietnamese towns Bac Ninh and Thai Nguyen to boost output and cut manufacturing costs.

“By offering better pricing to consumers in developing nations, we will find new growth,” a Samsung official said to the Korean newspaper. “This will also enable consumers in developed nations like North America and Europe to buy our LTE devices at more affordable prices.”

Until Samsung reveals any of its upcoming products, it’s tough to pinpoint exactly what to expect in 2013. However, from new phones in the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note lines to unbreakable, flexible displays, there are plenty of rumors to entertain our imaginations.